Jackson Kelley Interview 2019 Transcript
Chris Atkinson: Alright, everybody, welcome to the SinCast. This is Chris Atkinson from CinemaSins, joined as always by the voice of CinemaSins, Jeremy Scott. Jeremy Scott: Yello. Atkinson: And from Music Video Sins, Barrett Share. Barrett Share: Hi. Atkinson: And we have avery special guest joining us today, we have none other than the founder of G.R.O.S.S. Films, the creator of the widely beloved Concept Album Cinematic Universe, and an all around great guy, Mr. Jackson Kelley! Jackson Kelley: Hey, guys, what's up. I'm actually a really big fan of you guys. Scott: Really? Kelley: Yeah. I'm subscribed to CinemaSins and can recite the entire sins video for The Jungle Book. Share: Talented man. Kelley: Oh, yeah, dude. I wish I could say that without bragging. Atkinson: So, let's cut the crap and get started with everything. To begin, how did you start your film career? Kelley: I started when I was in the sixth grade. My mom and I were going to Whole Foods Market one day, and I decided to phone my dad about a decision I made. You see, I was big into sports at the time, mainly lacrosse. Then it just struck me. Sports were not my thing. I was slow, unathletic, and had quite a short fuse. I had to bite a kid in the stomach all because I tripped in football. Scott: So, like Happy Gilmore. Kelley: Exactly like Happy Gilmore, which is one of my favorite films of all time. But, while in the market, I called my dad and told him I wanted to pursue film. He completely supported me, and so did my mom. And now look where we are. Share: Amen. Scott: Here's a question for you. Why are you so fascinated with movies? Kelley: I guess because I was exposed to them at an early age. I was in love with Cars and Toy Story, basically anything Disney, which almost ended on a skiing trip. Thankfully that didn't stop me. I later transitioned into more mature films, even sneaking some Kevin Smith films after bedtime. Atkinson: Badassery right there. Kelley: You could say that, yes. Share: So, your biggest project is the Concept Album Cinematic Universe. Kelley: Yes, very true. Brings in all the dollars. Share: How'd you come up with the idea? Kelley: I was bored. Most of my best ideas come when I'm bored. Atkinson: Boredom can be an amazing thing sometimes. Kelley: Yeah. My original idea for the Concept Album Cinematic Universe was to include six films, those being The Dark Side of the Moon, Tommy, The Starman, The Wall, The Black Parade, and The Fabulous Killjoys. All of which are essentials in my book. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge followed shortly after, then I decided to add more films in, it blew the hell up, and boom! Instant success. Scott: Why do you call it by its full name instead of the CACU Kelley: If you say it like a word, it sounds like you're taking a dump. Atkinson: Makes sense. Kelley: Yeah. I was worried of all the Twitter memes, so I call it by its full name. Others I call the abbreviations. Share: Any recent projects you've been working on? Kelley: Yeah, lots. I recently put more focus on Discovery, my Daft Punk movie, but I have so many unfinished scripts, it's slowing me down. Scott: So, any solo projects? Like, none that belong to a Universe? Kelley: Ever since the G.R.O.S.S. Films name became a thing, we've put out a Curious George reboot that's currently our only family film. There's also an Avenue Q adaptation that I'm doing myself. Atkinson: When you say you're doing a film by yourself, what does that mean? Kelley: It's kinda self explanatory, but I just make a film by myself with no actors, just myself. Films like American Idiot and Avenue Q feature some scenes that would make my cast uncomfortable, since I only cast high school students. There's sex in that movie, and since we live in a Text-a-Tip world, I don't wanna get arrested like Josh Rose. Scott: Wasn't he in a film? Kelley: Used to be. He was in a minor role in Ed Hunter as an FBI agent. I was in my History class when Gage, the guy who plays Satan, told me everything. So I fired him. He just doesn't know that yet, and he probably never will. Atkinson: Can you explain some more controversies? Kelley: Yeah. There was one where I cast myself as Noodle in Gorillaz, and Noodle is a Japanese girl. People thought it was racist. I say to that, lack of Japanese girls at school. There was one for Three Cheers, where people burned the DVD's because of one scene. That also happened for 21st Century Breakdown as well, and now I'm on a Banned List. Not really. There was one for Ed Hunter again, where the opening scene was Eddie killing his parents. It was gruesome for some people. It's an homage to John Carpenter's Halloween. Share: What are some other Cinematic Universes you tried out? Kelley: Basically, anything but the Concept Album Cinematic Universe kinda sucks, but The Lego Multiverse is my second favorite one, and there was one for Roblox that gathered a lot of hate from the faceless idiots of the internet. Atkinson: What do you do when not making films? Kelley: Geez, so much stuff. I play some video games, but not much. I'm also an avid music listener, I can jam to anything except mainstream BS, and I write some books. I'm actually working on a memoir of my life. Scott: Any early films we should know about? Kelley: Oh god. Those early films sucked ass. I had no experiece whatsoever. Those copies are very rare, and one of them goes for about $3000 on eBay. They were parodies of popular films. Atkinson: Last question here, anything you need to say to aspiring filmmakers. Kelley: Lots, but I can sum it up like this. Just follow what you want to film, and sometimes pass up on the bad major studios. They're gross, no pun intended. Stay independent, go with A24, join us if you'd like. Keep on going until you lose your legs, and then keep going. Atkinson: Wow. That was an inspirational quote. Thank you, Jackson Kelley, and we'll see you next week on SinCast.